Vitality and Staying Alive in Beyond the Veil

In recent blogs we’ve focused on how to do things and the various ways in which success can be achieved. But it isn’t all sunshine and roses when investigating dangerous entities or environments, sometimes failure isn’t just a chance to push the narrative in new and interesting direction… sometimes, it’s fatal.

In Beyond the Veil, we wanted every investigation to carry a level of threat, that quintessential jeopardy that puts players on the edge of their seats or makes them think twice about free climbing that skyscraper. Whether you are facing malicious spirits, famous cryptids of legend, hostile Extraterrestrials, or the very elements themselves, we wanted to have a system that exposed the generally ‘squishy’ nature of us mere humans. Survival is not guaranteed and that is why the Vitality system exists: a clear, immersive way to track an Investigator's health and build up an overall picture of their physical wellbeing throughout an investigation.

What is Vitality in Beyond the Veil?

Every Investigator and Entity in the game has a Vitality Track, a scale from 0 to 100 that reflects their current state of health. A score of 100 represents full health, while 0 means unconsciousness and a need to ‘Dice with Death’ for their very survival.

Unlike hit points in most other systems, Vitality in Beyond the Veil is designed to always be the same range of values. Your Investigator’s ability to withstand physical damage is the thing that changes, not their overall pool of health. Whether it is body armour, the ability to roll with the punches, or emergency first aid, we wanted to represent the fact that humans generally cannot withstand large amounts of damage naturally.

Being eaten by Nessie is just as dangerous to an experienced Investigator as it is to a newbie!

Keeping track

As your Investigator takes damage and drops down the Vitality track, their condition worsens. They will move through a series of defined states: Starting at Fine, then moving through Bruised, Weak, Hurt, and finally Broken.

Each state causes a mechanical effect that alters how an Investigator behaves and performs. These effects are rolled randomly when crossing into a new state, and they range from minor inconveniences (such as a headache that impairs Social and Psychic checks) to serious injuries (like a punctured lung or even unconsciousness).

The further you fall down the Track, the more debilitating these effects become. A character who is Broken is seriously injured and could be dealing with bleeding, blindness, fractures, or worse. A team that prepares appropriately, or knows when to retreat, is key to success against hostile threats. Not every investigation is possible to resolve in a single attempt!

First Aid and Field Medicine

First Aid in Beyond the Veil is useful, but it is no magic wand. It can buy you time by handling smaller injuries and keeping an Investigator on their feet, but it will not fully heal you during an investigation. You will need the proper medical care of a professional with the appropriate tools at their disposal for that.

Each Vitality state (except Broken) allows a single First Aid opportunity during an investigation. First Aid rolls use Reality Checks, and the difficulty increases the worse your condition is. For example, treating a Bruised character might be fairly easy, but attempting to stabilise someone who is unconscious and bleeding out is a much more complex affair.

The effectiveness of First Aid also depends on the equipment available. A full medical kit will give you better results than someone rummaging through their backpack for plasters and a half drunk bottle of water.

As with all Reality Checks, Investigators can attempt to help each other using the ‘Lend a Hand’ mechanic, and clever players might narrate creative ways to assist to increase the chances of success for a critical application of First Aid. For example, one player might distract an Entity to give a teammate time to stabilise someone who has fallen during an Escalation.

Healing has limits

As mentioned, each Investigator can only benefit from successful First Aid a limited number of times per investigation: once for each of the early states (Fine, Bruised, Weak, Hurt). This forces tough decisions. Do you patch up early, or wait and risk worsening injuries?

It is worth reiterating that First Aid cannot help with the Broken status. At that point, you are dealing with serious trauma that requires proper treatment. However, if an Investigator did not use a healing opportunity during a previous state, they can still benefit from it later. This can help bring someone back from the brink following a particularly brutal encounter.

Stabilising and ‘Dicing with Death’

If an Investigator drops to 0 Vitality, they fall unconscious and are at risk of dying unless stabilised. In the Escalation Phase, if a teammate can reach them, a First Aid Check (RC15) can stabilise them and return them to 1 Vitality point. They re-enter the turn order and can act as normal, although likely in a dire situation that they’ll need to get away from.

If no one gets there in time, the fallen Investigator begins to ‘Dice with Death’.

This mechanic is as dramatic and playful as you want it to be. Predict the flip of a coin, have a roll-off, or challenge the Overseer to rock-paper-scissors. If the Overseer wins, the Investigator gains a ‘Mark of Death’. Accumulate too many marks, and the character dies. The default is three, but Overseers can be more forgiving or more brutal if they wish.

This is not just a tension mechanic. It is also a brilliant moment of storytelling. Players get to participate in their own fate, adding weight to the moment of near-death. The contest can be anything that the whole group agrees to, as long as there is a defined winner to determine the outcome.

Live, Laugh, Leave!

Vitality in Beyond the Veil is more than a damage track. It is a constant gauge of threat that rewards caution, teamwork, resource management, and clever use of the environment. Injuries matter. First Aid matters. And when you are staring down a creature that does not obey the laws of biology, holding on to that last shred of health might just be the difference between survival and passing into the Veil permanently.

So check your First Aid kits have been replenished, do not split the party, and remember: staying alive is only half the battle.

Uncover the Truth, Survive the Unknown.